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Abraham Lincoln/Transcript
Transcript The front of the Lincoln Monument in Washington, D.C., is shown. It is a many-columned building with a wide stone staircase leading up to it. Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby Tim is sleeping. Then the camera changes to his perspective. When he opens his eyes he sees a statue of Abraham Lincoln. TIM: (snoring) Good morning, Mr. Pres—Wait a minute. Where am I? Moby! Tim is lying down in the crook of the statue’s knee. Moby is sitting on the statue’s shoulder with a letter in his hand. The statue is seated with each of its arms resting on the arms of its chair. The camera zooms in on Moby. MOBY: Beep! The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a long rectangular pool, is shown. It is lined on either side with grass and a row of trees. The Washington Monument, a tall obelisk; is in the distance. Tim holds up a letter, which he then reads. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, who was Abraham Lincoln and what did he do? From Neal (Washington, D.C.). Tim and Moby now stand side by side in front of the Lincoln statue. TIM: You couldn't wait 'til after breakfast to teleport us here? MOBY: Beep. Moby shakes his head. TIM: Abraham Lincoln was the sixteenth president of the United States, he served from 1861 to 1865. He brought about the end of slavery and guided the US through the Civil War. A close-up of Abraham Lincoln is shown. He has wavy hair and a short beard. He is also wearing a suit and wire-rimmed glasses. The camera zooms out to show that he is reading a book at a table. TIM: These accomplishments have earned Lincoln a place among America’s greatest Presidents! MOBY: Beep? TIM: It’s true, he really was born in a log cabin in Kentucky in 1809. His parents were poor farmers, and young Abe grew up in serious poverty. A small log cabin is shown. It has one door, one window, and a chimney. TIM: After Abe’s mother died of an illness, his father married one of their neighbors. She was a big influence on young Abe and encouraged him to go to school. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Yup, Lincoln did grow to be quite tall—six feet, four inches, to be exact—and strong, too. In 1837, he moved to Springfield, Illinois, and began a career as a lawyer. He soon married a woman named Mary Todd, and with her had four sons. A young, clean-shaven Lincoln is shown. Then a woman in a dress, pearls, and a flowered crown appears next to him. MOBY: Beep! Moby frowns and looks sideways at Tim. TIM: Hang on, I’m getting to the good stuff. Lincoln’s political career started in the Illinois state legislature, where he served four terms, from 1838 to 1841. Then in 1846, he was elected to the US House of Representatives, where he served one term. As a congressman, he supported laws that would have banned slavery in any new territories acquired by the United States. A young, clean-shaven Lincoln in a suit is shown sitting in a chair with a high, rounded back. TIM: Lincoln thought that the Constitution protected slavery in states where it already existed. But he also believed the Founding Fathers did not want it to spread to new territories. He personally hoped that slavery would die out naturally as more and more free states were added to the country. Two men holding signs are shown facing each other. A man in a suit and a wide-brimmed hat holds a sign that reads, “Yes to slavery,” while a man in a formal suit and a top hat holds a sign that reads, “Slavery: No!” TIM: But in 1854, Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which let new territories decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery. In response, Lincoln gave a speech that outlined his moral, political, and economic arguments against slavery. Lincoln, wearing a long coat, is shown on a stage. He is gesturing to the large crowd in front of him. TIM: Around the same time, he helped form the new Republican Party, which had an anti-slavery platform. In 1858, he ran for the US Senate against Illinois Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, a major supporter of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The seven Lincoln-Douglas debates were the highlight of the campaign. Lincoln went toe-to-toe with the more well-known Douglas, challenging him on the topic of slavery. Lincoln and another man are shown standing together. Lincoln, one hand on his hip, watches the other man, who is pointing upward as he speaks. This man wears a suit with an upturned collar. The camera zooms in on him and then zooms back out. TIM: Lincoln lost the election, but his brilliant performance in the debates turned him into a major political star. The Republican Party picked him as its candidate for the 1860 presidential election—and this time, he defeated Douglas to win the presidency! An older Lincoln is shown, this time with his iconic beard. The background is a US flag. TIM: But there was no time to celebrate; before he took office, seven Southern states seceded, or left the Union, because they opposed Lincoln’s stance on slavery. Four more followed before the year was out. These 11 states declared themselves the Confederate States of America. The camera zooms in on the southern portion of a map of the United States. Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina are highlighted. Then Arkansas, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia are highlighted. TIM: Lincoln believed that secession was illegal, and he was willing to use force to preserve the Union. When Confederate troops fired on Union troops at Fort Sumter, South Carolina, in 1861, the Civil War began. A burning square building on an island is shown. Flames and smoke shoot from its roof. Three cannons fire at the building. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Oh yeah—throughout the war, Lincoln took an active role in military strategy, including the picking of top generals. And in 1862, he issued his Emancipation Proclamation. A piece of parchment covered in tiny writing is shown. TIM: It freed all the slaves in Confederate-controlled territory as of January 1st, 1863—and it also opened the door for African-American soldiers to fight in the Union army. The top half of the screen shows two shackled hands breaking the chain between them. The bottom half of the screen shows a row of uniformed African-American men holding bayonets. TIM: Lincoln then worked on the passage of the 13th Amendment, which would permanently abolish slavery throughout the United States. A panel on Moby’s lower arm opens, and he presses a button. A blank box appears behind Tim and Moby and transports them to an expansive field. They stand in front of several cannons. TIM: Uh, this is Gettysburg, Pennsylvania! The Battle of Gettysburg in 1863 was a major Union victory, and one of the bloodiest battles of the entire war. The camera zooms out on a battle scene. Two soldiers operate a cannon, while other soldiers shoot rifles. Some soldiers carry bayonets, and one raises a sword. An American flag is visible, and smoke fills the scene. TIM: Months after the battle, during a ceremony for the fallen soldiers, Lincoln delivered one of the most famous speeches in US history. The Gettysburg Address lasted just over two minutes, but it transformed American political thought. Using simple but poetic language, Lincoln reminded his audience that the Declaration of Independence was America’s founding document. The camera zooms out on Lincoln standing on a platform that is decorated with banners and an American flag. He gestures with one hand and rests his other on a piece of paper on a small table. An audience of men sit on either side of him and behind him. TIM: The message was clear: even if the Constitution allowed states to make their own laws about slavery, the Declaration’s promise of equality for everyone was more important. A document that begins “We the People” is shown. Then the Declaration of Independence is placed over it. TIM: In 1864, with Union victory in sight, Lincoln was re-elected in a landslide. He proposed a generous policy toward the South that would quickly put the bitterness of the war behind them—but some refused to let old grudges die. An actor named John Wilkes Booth was furious with Lincoln for promising to grant rights to former slaves. On April 14, 1865, while the president and first lady were attending a play at Ford’s Theatre, Booth snuck into the President’s box and shot him. (gunshot) A man with a mustache and wearing a cape and a suit is shown peering out from behind a curtain. The camera zooms in to show that the man is holding a gun and has fired a shot at the back of Lincoln’s head. Lincoln grasps the railing of the balcony in which he sits and leans forward, while the first lady and another man look back at John Wilkes Booth in shock. TIM: Lincoln died from the wound the next day. He was the first US president to be assassinated. But Booth couldn’t destroy Lincoln’s legacy. Over the course of his amazing life Lincoln reunited a fractured nation and almost singlehandedly ended slavery in the process. MOBY: Beep! The panel on Moby’s lower arm opens again, and he presses a button. The blank box appears and transports Tim and Moby away. When they reappear, they are hanging from the brow bone of a huge statue. TIM: What the— The camera zooms out to show that they are hanging from Lincoln’s head on Mount Rushmore. TIM: Oh, this is just perfect. Category:BrainPOP Transcripts